Auditory Skills and Cognitive Functions in Adult Hearing Aid Users: A Cross-Sectional Observational Comparison Study

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Audiology
• Cognitive Psychology

Background:

• Hearing loss affects auditory processing and cognitive functions.
• Hearing aids (HA) aim to restore audibility but may not fully compensate for processing deficits.
• Understanding the cognitive impact of hearing loss and HA use is crucial for rehabilitation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate learning and memory functions in adults using hearing aids (HA).
• To examine the relationship between auditory skills and cognitive functions in HA users.
• To compare cognitive performance between HA users and normal-hearing (NH) individuals.

Main Methods:

• 32 HA users (30-59 years) and 32 age-matched NH controls participated.
• Participants underwent auditory tests (SMRT, RGDT, MST, SSQ) and cognitive tests (AVLT, VADS-B).
• Statistical analyses explored group differences and relationships between auditory and memory performance.

Main Results:

• HA users exhibited significantly poorer auditory performance across all measures compared to NH controls.
• No significant overall differences in memory performance were found between groups.
• HA users showed lower auditory short-term memory, but this was not robust after multiple comparisons.
• Age significantly predicted auditory-verbal memory in HA users, with auditory abilities adding predictive value.

Conclusions:

• Memory functions are generally preserved in HA users despite significant auditory processing deficits.
• A potential vulnerability in auditory short-term memory may exist in HA users.
• The link between auditory processing and memory in HA users suggests degraded auditory input impacts cognition even with amplification.